JUST IN: Court bars 25 pro-Wike lawmakers from parading themselves as Rivers assembly members

A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has issued an interlocutory injunction barring 25 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from parading themselves as members of the House.

The 25 lawmakers led by Rt. Hon. Martins Amaewhule and loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Nyesom Wike had on December 13, 2023 defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Factional Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Victor Oko-Jumbo and two others had dragged the 25 lawmakers to court seeking that they should be stopped from parading themselves as members of the House of Assembly flowing their defection to another political party.

Also joined as defendants in the suit are the Rivers State Governor, the Attorney-General of the state and the Chief Judge of the state.

A certified true copy of the order reads in part: “An order of interlocutory injunction is granted preventing 1st to 25th defendants from parading and holding out themselves as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and/or meeting/sitting at the auditorium of the House of Assembly quarters located at off Aba Road, Port Harcourt or at any other place whatever to purport to carry out legislative business of the Rivers State House of Assembly, their legislative seats having been declared vacant pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

“An order of interlocutory injunction is hereby made restraining the 26th defendant to 28th defendant from dealing with, interfacing, accepting my resolutions, bills and or howsoever interfacing with 1st to 25th defendants in their purported capacities as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, their legislative seats having been declared vacant with effect from 13th December, 2023, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”